In early June, demonstrations were raised in Jordan an independent group, Hirak Shababi. The demonstrations were demanding the government to abolish the tex tax law, which will increase the percentage of citizens who will be taxed from 4.5% to 10%; it will increase government revenue to between $350 m and $430 m by 2020-2021. The main excuse for collecting higher taxes is to remedy national budget deficit.
From what I have learned during the time I was in Jordan, Jordan has a distinct demographics for its one third of the population are refugees. Due to Jordanian governments’ financial inability to aid those people, local NGOs, including UNWRA and UNHCR are ‘taking over’ this field from the government. Most Jordanians are not able to obtain adequate resources such as natural resources (water) or education, unless they are the descendants of government officials or military. Corruptions are as well common in Jordan and thus, when the government proposed to undergo an economic reform by collecting higher taxes, the public outraged. Jordanians vowed to continue protests and people realized ‘they have nothing to lose’.
Original Article: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2018/06/jordan-protests-180604052840527.html
